Wings
by Ferivae
Summary: Follows the development of Sirius and Hermione's relationship through the years starting with the end of 3rd year when Sirius escapes with Hermione's and Harry's help. Story will pick up with the summer after 6th year. Eventual HGSB, rated T for now.
1. Third Year: The Escape

**This follows the development of Sirius and Hermione's relationship through the years starting with the end of 3rd year when Sirius escapes with Hermione's and Harry's help. The story will really pick up with the summer after 6th year, which is where it stops largely following the books. Obviously Sirius will not die 5th year. Eventual HGSB, rated T for now.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

When Harry was done saying good-bye to Sirius, Hermione rushed forward to hug him and slipped a piece of parchment with her Muggle address into Sirius' pocket.

"Please write me and let me know you are okay," she whispered in his ear before stepping back.

Sirius smiled warmly at the young witch and his Godson before flying off. Hermione heart panged for the newly freed man and the demons he must have.

* * *

Hermione received her first letter from Sirius two weeks into the summer.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I wanted to thank you for taking me to fly! It was a wonderful experience. I'm staying in my summer home, and I had a safe trip here. Thank you for your kindness. I hope all is well. Do make sure Prong's son is doing okay. _

_Best wishes,_

_Snuffles_

Hermione was careful when writing her letters to Sirius (aka Snuffles) not to say anything suspicious. She didn't trust the Ministry of Magic not to intercept and read them. She never knew his exact location, but she was sure it was safer that way.

She wrote in the same vague terms as Sirius, but after a few letters they managed to make some common ground and were able to discuss more interesting things that how the other was doing.

Hermione noticed how quickly he always seemed to reply and she guessed wherever he was hiding, he was alone and terribly bored and restless.

She soon began to send him books to read and an occasional Daily Prophet. They would discuss the books but never the Daily Prophet in their letters for fear of Ministry surveillance. She was also sure to send a few tins of cookies and sweets to him every so often.

One time Sirius sent her a feather with his letter she could only assume belonged to Buckbeak. She smiled when she got it and kept it safe.

* * *

Hermione got a letter later that summer that made her nervous.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I may be returning soon. It seems Prong's son may need me to be there for him. Please be there for him if I can't. You are an amazing young witch and he needs good friends now more than ever._

_A most proudly proclaimed love,_

_Snuffles_

Hermione grinned at the change in the closing of his letter. She could tell he was a flirty kind of guy, always working on how to make girls smile.

_Dear Snuffles,_

_Please be safe on your journey. I know it may be a tricky one. Promise me you will consult the right people about traveling. Make sure it is a good time for a visit. I will be seeing Prong's son soon enough. Please take care._

_A most worried love,_

_Hermione_

A few days later Hermione left for the Burrow. She was excited to see Ron and soon enough Harry, though she knew she wouldn't enjoy the Quidditch World Cup as much as they would.

She spent the first few days at the Burrow anxiously awaiting a letter from Sirius. She finally received one on the day the Weasleys went to retrieve Harry from the Dursleys.

_Dear Hermione,_

_I think you are right and I will listen to you. I will make sure it is a good time for a visit before I barge in. Always the voice of reason, aren't you? And thank you for sending me _Gulliver's Travels. _It is a good story. Please do tell me when you see Prong's son, I haven't written him back yet._

_A most unashamed love for a wonderful young witch,_

_Snuffles_

Hermione smiled. She was glad he would make sure it would be safe before returning. She was about to write her reply when she heard a commotion downstairs which was Harry's safe arrival.

She went downstairs and her mouth fell open in horror when they told her how Harry's 'rescue' went.

"You basically destroyed their living room and deformed their son?" Hermione asked incredulously. The twins nodded happily. Hermione shook her head but thought Sirius might get a good laugh out of the story. The twins smirks were soon gone when Mr. Weasley returned.

Harry took the opportunity to take Ron and Hermione out to the garden where he told them about his scar hurting.

"Did you tell Sirius about it?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, but I haven't heard back from him yet," Harry said. Hermione nodded in understanding. That was why Sirius wanted to return all of a sudden.

Hermione excused herself and went upstairs to write Sirius back. She wasn't sure why she didn't tell Ron and especially Harry how much she had been writing Sirius, but she felt like Sirius could use a good friend and she didn't know if Harry would be uncomfortable with her writing his Godfather so much.

_Dear Snuffles,_

_You're quite welcome for the book; it's one of my favorites. Prong's son just arrived and is doing well. He told me about the headaches he's been getting, but he is otherwise okay and glad to be with us. Apparently picking him up was quite an ordeal. It seems using the Floo network on closed-off fireplace doesn't end well, nor does feeding a cousin a charmed toffee that makes your tongue grow exponentially. Please be safe._

_Always blushing at you compliments,_

_Hermione_

* * *

Hermione was happy to go to the Quidditch World Cup, though she knew next to nothing about the game. She almost got some joy out of mangling quidditch terms and watching Ron's face.

The day after the Quidditch World Cup fiasco with the Death Eaters, Hermione sent a letter to Sirius explaining what had happened. She also sent a copy of the Daily Prophet that covered the story. She received a response that thanked her for informing him and Sirius asked her be there for Harry for the quickly approaching school year.

She wrote him back and told him to keep writing her even though she would be in school, and she also asked him to tell her if and when he might visit.

Hermione left for Hogwart's in high spirits and made sure she didn't boss Harry or Ron around too much. She wanted everyone to be happy and stress-free for once, and wanted to keep her promise to Sirius that she would be there for Harry whenever he needed it.

* * *

**Please review and leave your thoughts!**


	2. Fourth Year: Part I

**Thank you for reading! Even those of you who have read, but not reviewed. :) That being said, thank you _minxiie_ and _Euphoria123_.**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

Hermione received her first letter from Sirius at breakfast two weeks into the term, about mid-September.

_Hermione,_

_Of course I will continue to write during the school year, as long as you promise to continue writing me as well. I have written Harry about his headaches. My only hope is that they will go away. Is there any way you could send me a pumpkin pastry from Hogwarts? They always were my favorite. Looking forward to your reply._

_Love most humble,_

_Snuffles_

Hermione smiled. She also noticed Sirius' free use of Harry's name. Apparently they were out of the most dangerous time after his escape.

At lunch that day she took five pumpkin pastries from the table, much to the shock of Harry and Ron.

"Since when do you eat like Ron?" Harry asked amusedly.

"Oh, shut it. This is for snacks later. Because I will be doing my homework and studying unlike some people," she said pointedly as she left the table. Ron and Harry exchanged grins.

Hermione went to the Owlery with the pastries in a tin and wrote Sirius telling him about the upcoming Triwizard Tournament and how the other schools would be arriving at the end of October. She almost wrote that her birthday was in a few days on September 19th, but she didn't want Sirius to feel pressured to find something to send her.

* * *

Hermione did not hear back from Sirius for some time. She didn't want to seem too worried so she silently awaited a response. She waited a long time indeed.

On October 30th, the delegations from the other two schools arrived. Hermione was happy to join in the celebration, but the back of her mind was constantly nagging her to write Sirius again and see if he was okay. It was unlike Sirius to go so long without writing back. However, during dinner that night a thought struck her. It was on Halloween that Harry's parents were killed. Maybe that's why Sirius hadn't written her back. Perhaps he got depressed around this time of year. That certainly made sense to her, especially if he was all alone in hiding. He had nothing but his own sad thoughts to keep him company, much like in Azkaban.

She made up her mind. After dinner when they were in the Common Room, Hermione asked if she could go borrow a book from Harry's dorm. He shrugged .

Hermione was surprised when she was allowed up the stairs to the boy's room. She heard there were spells in pace to prevent visits from the opposite sex. She shrugged it off and guessed the spells in question must be able to determine intentions.

Up in Harry's room she found the photo album Hagrid had given Harry years ago. She found a lovely picture of James and Lily and transfigured a piece of parchment into an exact copy.

She headed back down to the common room, greeting some odd looks from boys on her way back down the stairs. She smiled scandalously at them and continued down.

"Did you find the book?" Harry asked looking up.

"Oh, yeah, but I decided it's not the one I need. Thank you though. Has Sirius written you recently?" she added in a whisper. Harry looked sad for a moment.

"No, I haven't heard from him all month. I hope he's okay," Harry said, looking a little crushed.

"I'm sure he's okay. He'll write soon, I'll bet you anything. I'll be in the library, okay?" Hermione said as she collected her things. Harry nodded and smiled.

Once in the library, she wrote Sirius a short letter.

_Dear Snuffles,_

_The other schools arrived today for the Tournament. They will draw names tomorrow to decide who will represent each school._

_Harry says he hasn't gotten any replies from you lately. It will do him some good to hear from you._

_I hope this makes you smile. You will not be the only one remembering James and Lily. I won't pretend like I know them like you did, but I will be thinking about them this Halloween._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

She put the photo inside the envelope and went to send the letter off with a package of sweets. She hoped it reached him by the following day which was Halloween.

* * *

The next day, Hermione was amused to watch the Weasley twins try to cross the age line. She shook her head but laughed when they sprouted long white hair that looked oddly like Dumbledore's own impressive beard. She smiled and continued writing an essay for Potions. Not long after, the students from Durmstrang came to enter their names. Hermione's eyes met with Viktor Krum's for a moment. He gave her a quick smile that made her blush so she looked back down.

At the Halloween feast that night, Dumbledore started the drawing of the names. When Harry's name was unexpectedly spit out from the Goblet, Hermione's heart sank. Sirius would definitely be coming back now no matter what danger. And Hermione could completely understand. Something wasn't right.

She spent the next few hours after Harry returned trying to console him. Many people had instantly turned against him, thinking he had put his name in the Goblet himself. She believed Harry that he didn't do it, but she was one of very few people.

She also started to worry even more about Sirius. She still hadn't heard anything from him and it had been over a month since his last letter. Surely if he had been captured, it would have made the Daily Prophet? She tried to shake those negative thoughts from her head. It was about 10 o'clock and Harry and Ron had gone to bed, though Ron seemed oddly quiet. After they left her alone in the Common Room, her worries overwhelmed her. She knew she shouldn't walk the grounds after dark, but Hermione really needed to clear her head.

She made it outside without anyone noticing her. She thought about visiting Hagrid, but even she didn't think it was a good idea to go near the edge of the Forest at night. She settled to walk around the perimeter of the castle. As she rounded one of the walls that was near the base of Gryffindor tower, she saw a shadow. Her heart stopped when she saw it was cast off the form of a large animal. With a jolt of recognition, she saw it was Sirius in his canin form. He didn't see her. He was looking up at the tower and she guessed he wanted to see Harry. A moment later the dog turned to walk off and Hermione saw that he was limping.

Not wanting to startle Sirius or draw anyone else's attention, she decided to quietly follow. When had he gotten back? How did he get hurt?

Sirius, still in his Animagus form, limped quickly in the general direction of Hogsmeade. When he was near the edge of the village, he veered off into the woods. Hermione felt a pang of nervousness, but decided to follow anyway.

At least a mile into the woods, he came to the base of a rocky hill. Sirius made a slow and pained climb about halfway up the steep and uneven slope and then disappeared. As carefully as she could, Hermione climbed the same treacherous path. When she came to where Sirius has disappeared she saw the opening of a cave. He had chosen a good hiding place. You couldn't see the opening of the cave unless you were right in front of it. She took quiet steps, not wanting to startle Sirius.

A hand grabbed her by the throat and slammed her hard into the stone wall. She shrieked in pain and the hand released her.

"Merlin, Hermione? I am so sorry," Sirius immediately helped her up ungracefully. He looked horrible. His face was hollow and gaunt. He looked terribly thin and ragged. "I felt someone watching me, and when they followed me all the way back here, I figured it was Snivellus or some Ministry goon. I'm so sorry Hermione," Sirius apologized again.

"Snivellus?" Hermione asked when she managed to take a good breath.

"Oh, Snape I mean. I guess it's Professor Snape, isn't it," he said, though Hermione could tell he meant no respect. Without another moment's hesitation, Hermione leaped at him and hugged him.

"Oh Sirius! I thought something had happened to you! I haven't heard from you in so long," Hermione said, finally stepping back from the surprised looking Sirius. "What happened to you? I saw you limping, are you injured?" Hermione asked. Sirius moved his hand to his left side.

"Ah, well, you see, I had to travel lesser know paths to get here to avoid getting caught. I ended up having to come through from the other side of the Forbidden Forest to finally get here. I managed to avoid most of the nasty beasts in there, but a couple of nights ago I ran into some bad-tempered centaurs," he said. He grabbed Hermione's wrist when she reached out to where he had grabbed his side in pain. Hermione huffed and stepped back.

"Sirius Black, if you're injured you need to let me do what I can! It's not like I can call Madame Pomfrey here or anything," Hermione reasoned, putting her hands on her hips and frowning.

"Poppy is still around is she? She used to tell me and James' off quite often back in our day, you know, every time we managed to-" Sirius stopped when he saw Hermione's face. "Ah, not one to be distracted are you?" Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. Sirius sighed.

He sat down on the cold stone floor of the cave and pulled the rag that was his shirt over his head to allow Hermione to see his injuries. Hermione breathed in sharply. There was a large gash with a deep black bruise all around it on his left side.

"You said some bed-tempered centaurs did this? From what I know, they don't attack without provocation. You didn't mouth off to them, did you?" Hermione asked.

"What would give you that idea?" Sirius asked with a big grin on his face, confirming Hermione's suspicions.

"Merlin's balls! Mouthing off to centaurs? What else would you expect to happen? Of all the things to do to a centaur, you decide to be smart with them? What were you thinking?" Hermione asked as she knelt down next to him and started doing some of the basic healing charms she knew. She was lecturing him more out of worry than actual anger, but she couldn't help it.

"You know, you sound just like Lily. Always setting me straight, she was," Sirius said nostalgically. Hermione looked up at him. She could tell he was in pain from the memories.

"Never did any good, did it," Hermione said gently. Sirius' gaze refocused as he tuned in to what she said. He smiled weakly.

"No, it didn't," Sirius agreed. He looked at the young witch who was gently prodding his wound, which was quickly looking better. He wondered how he managed to gain the affections of such a sweet girl.

"I got your letter. Last night actually. Right after you sent it, I imagine. It didn't have far to travel from the castle," Sirius finally said. Hermione looked up, not knowing if he liked what she sent.

"It was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you," Sirius said softly. Hermione gave him a watery smile but quickly looked back down to avoid bursting into tears. The pained look in his eyes was too much. Sirius smiled at her genuine compassion. "Though I will have to ask you to stop sending me sweets. You're going to give me diabetes," Sirius said, trying to lighten the mood.

Hermione half-laughed, half-choked back a sob.

"Are you getting food from anywhere else," she asked suddenly. Sirius looked uncomfortable.

"Don't worry about it. I manage," Sirius said.

"Nonsense. I live in a castle full of food. I'm not going to leave you up here to starve. I'll get you as much food as you can handle," Hermione said very matter-of-factly as she finished healing what she could. She felt satisfied that it wouldn't get infected and sat back to look at him properly.

"So when did you get here? Why haven't you written?" she asked.

"It's hard to explain, Minnie," he said. She gave him a disgusted look.

"No to Minnie as your nickname, then? Well, goodness, Hermione's a mouthful you know," Sirius said. She raised an eyebrow at him again.

"Right, you're not one to be distracted. Well," Sirius sighed, struggling to find the right words, "This time of year reminds me of when James and Lily were killed, on Halloween as you know. I just get in a funk and it's hard to shake. I decided being back here and seeing Harry might do me some good. I think Dumbledore knows I'm around, but he doesn't want to interfere as long as I don't get Harry or anyone in trouble. Speaking of which, you should go back to the castle. It has to be past your curfew," Sirius said hurriedly, as if just now realizing that.

Hermione leaned forward and hugged the man. He seemed startled, but hugged her back all the same, almost squeezing the life out of her. It occurred to her that he probably hadn't had any contact with anyone since he left her and Harry at the end of last year. After another few long moments, Hermione pulled back breaking the embrace. Sirius reached up and wiped a stray tear from her cheek. He shook his head.

"Where the hell did you come from, and why do you care about me?" he said absent-mindedly.

"Where I come from, Sirius Black, is a world that owes you an apology. And I won't justify your second question," Hermione said standing up.

"One thing, Hermione. Please don't tell Harry I'm back, not yet. I don't want him to see me like this," Sirius pleaded. Hermione nodded, but then sighed as he mentioned Harry again.

"You haven't heard about the Tournament have you? What happened tonight?" she asked somberly.

"No, what happened?" Sirius asked, all thoughts of Hermione's curfew forgotten. Hermione explained how Harry's name had come out of the Goblet and how so many people think Harry put in his name himself.

"Dumbledore's too smart for just anyone to tamper with the Goblet. It had to have been a strong witch or wizard. Dark magic, I'm thinking," Sirius said, obviously worried for Harry.

"Yes, that's what Moody said, according to Harry," Hermione said.

"Moody? Mad-Eye Moody is teaching at Hogwart's? I never thought I'd see the day. Defense Against the Dark Arts I imagine?" Sirius asked, amusedly.

"Yes, though I think I prefer Remus," Hermione said with a smile. Sirius laughed.

"You know, I did manage to write Remus myself since we sorted things out about Pettigrew," Sirius said the last word like he was talking about dung. "Remus said you were the britghtest young witch he ever met! Brave and compassionate too. He said you figured out his lycanthropy but stood by him all the same. Said you managed to give him a heart-breaking good-bye last year even after you saw his transforamtion and he almost hurt you and the others," Sirius said with admiration.

"I can't imagine what he has been through, not just with the lycanthropy. When I think about it, he lost everything that Halloween. Lily and James were dead. He thought Pettigrew was dead too and thought you were the one who had done it all. He lost everything and everyone he cared about most. I'm guessing he was too afraid to take Harry himself because of his condition?" Hermione asked. It was Sirius' turn for a watery smile.

"Goodness, he wasn't kidding about your brightness or compassion. I don't think many people have thought about what he went through during that time," Sirius said looking at Hermione in awe. She smiled but knew it was getting late.

"I should probably go. I will try to keep Harry's spirits up. Do write him back though, he is sad that you haven't written," Hermione said. Sirius looked guilty for a moment.

"Yes, I will write him back. But please, don't let anyone know I am here. Please," Sirius begged again.

"Of course," Hermione said, shocked at how quickly he feared her betraying him. She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "You be careful, Sirius Black. No more mouthing off to centaurs or any other beasts for that matter," Hermione said sternly, though she was smiling.

"Of course, my dear, how can I say no to such a pretty face?" Sirius said with a lopsided grin. Much to Hermione's horror, she felt herself blushing for the second time that day. She decided she needed to work on controlling the capillaries in her face. They were betraying her far too often for her own liking.

"Goodnight, Snuffles," she said, quickly turning away hoping he didn't notice.

"Goodnight, Ms. Tiny 'Mione," Sirius said, smiling so that the corners of his eyes crinkled. She really hoped that name wouldn't stick either, though it was better than 'Minnie.'

Once she made her way to the bottom of the hill, she heard an animal's cry from the air. She looked up and saw Buckbeak land at the mouth of the cave and go inside with some rodent in its mouth. She smiled and headed back to the castle as quickly as she could. She made her way onto the grounds without incident. When she approached the closest door to her on the side of the castle, she heard voices quickly coming toward her from inside so she crouched down out of sight.

"You don't think Potter put in his own name? He's done stupider things for less attention," a voice said that Hermione recognized as Snape's.

"Severus, I will not hear this! I have every bit of faith in him and I believe him. He was not lying. You will do well to start focusing on finding out who really did this than to continue your unfounded suspicion of Harry doing this himself," Dumbledore said, sounding sterner than Hermione had ever heard him. She also felt a rush of gratitude toward Dumbledore for sticking by Harry. They walked out the door and continued to walk toward the Forbidden Forrest, toward Hagrid's hut.

As soon as their voices moved far enough away, Hermione quietly came in the side door that opened near the dungeons. She was about to head toward the stairs that would take her up toward Gryffindor tower when something tapped her side, making her jump. She fell to the ground only to look a small creature in the eyes.

"You are Hermione Granger, good friend to the Boy Who Lived!" the thing cried so loudly that Hermione wanted to put her hand over his mouth. Suddenly, Hermione remembered Harry talking about a small, odd creature who was too loud for its own good…

"Are you…Dobby?" Hermione asked as politely as she could manage. The house-elf nodded.

"It's nice to meet you. Harry has told me about you," Hermione said gently, holding out her hand to shake his. Dobby's eyes watered.

"You are too kind, Miss! You are too kind like Harry Potter!" the creature wailed. Hermione looked around, hoping a Prefect wasn't on duty nearby. Dobby's wails would be hard to miss.

"Oh, well thank you Dobby, but please, I will get in trouble if I'm caught out of bed right now," Hermione said as nicely as she could, patting his small hand. "So, uh, what are you doing at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked nicely, standing up.

"Dumbledore allows Dobby to work for him! A great man and wizard, he is! Dobby works in the kitchens with the other house elves. Would Miss like something to eat?" Dobby asked. Hermione was shocked to hear about the 'other' house elves. How many were there? But at the same time, she did want to send Sirius some food as soon as possible.

"Sure, Dobby. Tell me about working here," she said as he led her down another hall.

"After Harry Potter freed Dobby from the Malfoys, Dobby looked for work, but work was hard to find for Dobby! Dumbledore hired Dobby a few months ago. I get a whole galleon a week and one day off a month!" Dobby squeaked proudly.

"One galleon a week and one day off a month! That's it?" Hermione asked, appalled.

"Oh no, Miss, it is an honor to work for such a man as Dumbledore! He offered Dobby ten Galleons a week and weekends off! But Dobby said no to him, it was too kind. Most house-elves work for no Galleons," Dobby said proudly. Hermione was horrified.

"How many house elves are there at Hogwarts, Dobby?" Hermione asked as they came to a painting of some fruit. Dobby reached up and tickled the pear and the portrait opened.

"Oh there are many of us, Miss, perhaps hundreds," Dobby said much to Hermione's dismay.

Once in the kitchen Dobby asked what Hermione would like.

"Well I have a friend who missed dinner. As well as some other meals," Hermione began and Dobby disappeared before she finished. She looked around the kitchen. It was an enormous room. She felt a pang of guilt for never wondering who prepared all the food at Hogwarts.

Dobby returned with three baskets full of food. There was chicken and lamb chops with potatoes and corn and an assortment of vegetables. There was also a lot of bread and even some pudding in its own container as well as a couple of closes flasks of pumpkin juice. Hermione stared at it in awe.

"Thank you so much Dobby. You are too kind," Hermione said, still in awe of how quickly Dobby put this all together. Dobby sobbed again.

"No, Miss, you are too kind! Yes, too kind! Great like Harry Potter, but so nice like a lady! Dobby hasn't known such a nice lady in so long!" Dobby cried. Hermione just awkwardly patted him on the back. Since they were in the kitchens, she didn't worry about getting caught.

"Well, I really must go Dobby, but thank you again. May I come visit you again?" Hermione asked. She was not happy with the house-elf situation at Hogwarts.

"Of course Miss! Please bring Harry Potter too! It has been so long since Dobby has seen him!" Dobby squeaked. Hermione smiled and nodded before exiting through the portrait with the three baskets of food in her arms.

The baskets were heavy. With some trouble, she made it to the Owlery. She had to hide more than once from patrolling Prefects. She also narrowly avoided Snape heading back down to the dungeons. She hid behind a statue of one of Salazar Slytherin's descendants.

Once in the Owlery, she wrote a quick note.

_Snuffles,_

_I hope this is better than those tins of sweets you have apparently been living off of. Please fatten up._

_Diabetic Love, _

_Hermione_

It ended up taking six of the school owls to carry the entire load. Two owls struggled with each basket as they flew off. Hermione felt bad for them, but felt a little better knowing they didn't have far to fly.

* * *

**Please review! I just need to know if there is enough interest to continue posting.**


	3. Fourth Year: Part II

**Thank you for the reviews! I'm having a lot of fun writing this. **

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

Hermione visited Sirius in the cave every few days and continued sending baskets of food as often as she could. Sirius had begged her to bring a wizard chess set and play a few games with him. Hermione argued, knowing chess was not her strong suit, but eventually gave in.

Hermione grumbled when Sirius knocked over her knight and declared check-mate on one such occasion. It was now two weeks since Hermione had first found Sirius, and he was looking much better and healthier. He always sat around shirtless even when Hermione was there. She found it hard not to look at his bare, tattooed chest. She ended up blushing every time her eyes strayed.

She told Sirius all about how Ron had been in a bad mood ever since Harry was entered in the Tournament, and how she was worried because the First Task was only a little over a week away.

"It's really annoying, actually. Ron seems to believe the garbage that Skeeter woman wrote about Harry," Hermione scathed, motioning at the Daily Prophet which had the article in it, which Sirius has used to clean up Buckbeak's droppings.

"They will sort it out, trust me. You wouldn't believe the things James and I used to get in arguments about," Sirius reminisced. Hermione smiled. Sirius had been talking about the Potters more frequently and seemed less saddened by it each time. She guessed he had never had anyone to really talk about it with. "In fact, you wouldn't believe how many times our egos got in the way. More than once we declared that The Marauders were no more."

"But you always sorted it out in the end?" Hermione asked.

"Well, except that last time, you see," Sirius said a little sadly, referring to Peter Pettigrew's betrayal. "You know, Harmony, you would have made a good Marauder," he said after a few moments, changing the subject slightly.

"It's HER-MI-O-NE, not Harmony, firstly. Secondly, I wouldn't have made a good Marauder because I don't pride myself on breaking school rules," Hermione quipped.

"But you're very good at it," Sirius grinned widely, knowing she couldn't argue that point. Hermione blushed and grumbled about people being smart-arses.

"I was wondering if you could help me, Hermione, clever witch as you are," Sirius said grinningly.

"Of course," she said looking up, all comments about smart-arses forgotten.

"I want to talk to Harry. I really don't think it's safe for him to come here seeing as everyone is keeping such a close eye on him. I was hoping to maybe Floo him in the Common Room some night," Sirius said.

"Well that shouldn't be too hard. You just need to make your own make-shift fireplace here in the cave. And of course…ah, you need Floo powder," Hermione said, realizing what he would ask her.

"Ah, well, I mean, I understand if you can't or don't want to get in trouble by trying," Sirius said, shifting where he sat. He felt bad for asking her to do such a thing.

"Who are you talking to, Sirius? Did you not just say I would make an excellent Marauder?" Hermione puffed her chest in mock-pride.

"Actually, I said you would make a _good_ Marauder, I said nothing about excellent," Sirius teased. Hermione chest fell and she put her hands on her hips.

"Is that anyway to talk to someone you're asking a favor from?" she huffed.

"My apologies, lady," Sirius said, grabbing her hand from her hip and kissing her knuckles. Hermione laughed.

Sirius bullied her into playing him another game of wizard chess before she left. As they played, or rather, as Sirius was winning, Hermione told him all about the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare (S.P.E.W.) which she had started up after visiting Dobby the first time. Sirius laughed, eyes twinkling.

"Both a Marauder and a crusader for equal rights? You're keeping quite busy," Sirius mused as he took out Hermione's queen and declared check-mate.

"Well, I'm not actually a Marauder, am I?" Hermione said grumpily as she packed up the chess set.

"Well then, I suppose now declare you an honorary Marauder. Which means you need a good nickname," Sirius said. Hermione groaned. All of his attempts at nicknames had been quite dreadful so far.

"You have to let me approve any nickname you think of. I won't be going around known as Minnie or Tiny 'Mione or Harmony the Marauder," Hermione said quite seriously.

"Alright, kitten," Sirius said then laughed as she threw him a nasty look.

"Nor will I be Kitten the Marauder," she said, putting her hands on her hips again. "I need to go. I'll get you the Floo powder soon. Go ahead and set a time to talk to Harry. I'll get it to you."

"Thank you," Sirius said sincerely. Hermione smiled and went down the hill and headed back to the castle.

* * *

A couple of days later, Harry got a letter from Sirius at breakfast and excitedly told Hermione about it.

"Sirius says he's back in the area and he wants to see me face-to-face! Well, kind of. He said he wants to Floo me in the Common Room on Saturday night!" Harry said excitedly, though quietly.

Hermione smiled. She was glad to see Harry so happy. Ron being an arse had really dampened Harry's mood.

"Well good. Just be careful," Hermione said. Just then, Ron entered the Great Hall. He saw Harry and Hermione and went to the other end of the table. Harry growled in frustration and left the table for his first class. Hermione could only pat his hand in comfort before he stormed off. Now that she was alone, she had some mischief to plan.

At lunch she innocently asked Harry if she could borrow the Marauder's map and the Invisibility Cloak.

"What for?" Harry asked more out of curiosity than suspicion. She decided to go with a fairly plausible story.

"Well, I'm going to do some extra studying and research tonight in the library, so I'll be out past curfew. I want to avoid Filch and Professor Snape and whoever else wanders the halls looking for students to take points from. I promise to be very careful with them," Hermione said. Harry nodded and added some snide comment about Snape which Hermione chose to ignore. Harry passed her the Map and Cloak at the end of Herbology and she thanked him.

She felt bad leaving him alone that evening after dinner, but she needed to get a move on finding some Floo powder for Sirius. She knew the only people in Hogwart's who would have any would be the professors.

She went to the library and started doing some homework while also watching the Map. She was watching for a professor to leave their office for a good bit of time. After 30 minutes of no such luck, Hermione sighed and put her quill down.

"You are alvays reading by yourself," a deep voice said from behind her, making Hermione jump. She quickly hid the Map from view as she turned to face the owner of the voice. It was Viktor Krum.

"Oh, um, hi," she said stupidly while trying to hold back a blush.

"Is the seat taken?" he asked, indicating the seat across the small table from her.

"Oh, no, it's not," she said nervously.

"I hope I did not scare you. I see you in here alvays," he said, looking at her smiling. It was an almost-flirty kind of smile that Hermione knew so well. "I do not bother you, do I?" he asked. Hermione couldn't help but find his accent cute.

"No, I was just about to take a break," she said, the Map and mission forgotten.

He asked her what kind of literature she enjoyed, and that was the end of it. She was quickly sucked into the surprisingly good conversation they had. Sometimes his broken English was hard to understand, but it did not discourage either of them. At some point she blurted out that she had watched him in the Quidditch World Cup that summer. She blushed.

"Sorry, that sounded weird," she said.

"Vell, I vas the one vatching you in here," he smiled. She looked down to try to control her blush and saw the corner of the Map under her book. She shot up from her seat.

"I'm so sorry, I have to go. I was supposed to, um, meet a friend," she said picking up her things quickly.

"Oh," he said looking disappointed, "May I see you again?"

Hermione, still blushing, looked at him.

"Yeah. I mean, of course. I'm in here a lot. I mean, you already knew that, but yeah. I'll see you around," she finished sheepishly and hurried away from the library, leaving a confused but smiling Bulgarian.

She chastised herself for letting herself get distracted by a boy, and then chastised herself for acting so silly around him. She realized she never even told him her name.

She groaned as she looked at a clock and saw she spent over an hour and a half talking to Viktor. She shook her head at herself and she reached an empty corridor. It was near curfew and she was hoping a few teachers would go out to do rounds.

She opened the map again under torchlight and looked at various teachers' offices. She realized with a gulp that the only teacher not near their office was a dot labeled Severus Snape. He was actually quite far from his office. He was up in the astronomy tower. Hermione thought his was odd; she did not take Professor Snape to be a stargazer.

She almost convinced herself she should do this another night, but finally decided she should go ahead and get this over with. The sooner she got the Floo powder for Sirius, the better.

She headed down to the dungeons, keeping the map out and watching for anyone nearby. She left her bag behind the same statue she used to hide from Professor Snape a couple of weeks previously. She slowly crept into his classroom with only her wand and the map, covered by the Invisibility Cloak. Before she opened the door, she checked the dot labeled Severus Snape once more. He was still pacing around the Astronomy tower.

She made her way across the classroom to the steps that led to his office door. She quickly lifted the ward locking his office and quietly stepped inside and closed the door. It was as creepy as she remembered when she snuck in her second year for boomslang skin, except there were even more jars of disgusting things. She took off the Cloak and laid it down with the Map. She went to the fireplace and looked for Floo powder. The mantle was above her head so she carefully looked at it on tiptoes. She finally found a jar with what she wanted.

She was so busy putting some powder in a small cloth pouch that she did not hear someone enter the classroom. The footsteps outside the office almost made her shriek. She quickly and silently grabbed the Cloak and Map and she hid herself in the corner. She was surprised when saw the Durmstrang headmaster Karkaroff enter. He looked at the door in surprise. He had expected it to be warded. Hermione inwardly cursed herself for not thinking to put the wards back up while inside the office.

Karkaroff growled when he saw no one inside.

"You can't hide from me forever, Severus," he said to himself as he rubbed his left forearm through his robes. Hermione thought it was very odd, but didn't have enough time to think anything else when Professor Snape burst through the door himself.

"What the hell are you doing in here, Igor?" Snape demanded through gritted teeth.

"Looking for you as it were," Karkaroff said equally standoffishly.

"And you found it necessary to break into my office? I'm not stupid. I have the wards set to alert me when they're broken through," Professor Snape growled. Hermione chastised herself yet again. She should have expected Snape to be alerted.

"I found the door unlocked and unwarded," Karkaroff said angrily.

"I'm not stupid. I was just alerted, and here you are," Snape said vehemently.

"And where were you? Still hiding from me? You can't avoid me forever, Severus."

"I don't _hide_ from anyone," Snape hissed.

Hermione found the exchange very odd. She decided it was a good time to try to slip out. She edged along the walls of the office to the door under the cCoak. She scuffed her foot on the floor and was afraid one of them heard, but they were too busy yelling at each other.

She slipped out the office unnoticed and quickly left the classroom. She grabbed her bag from behind the statue and ran. She didn't stop until she was far from the dungeons. She caught her breath and looked at the Map, still under the Cloak.

Two dots were still in Snape's office. She sighed.

She quickly headed to the Owlery with the pouch of Floo powder. She didn't want to risk sneaking to see Sirius. Not tonight. She sent him a quick letter with it.

_Snuffles,_

_You wouldn't believe where I got this from. You owe me. Big time. You better come up with one hell of a nickname._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

She made it back to the Gryffindor tower and sighed in relief when she was in her bed. She fell asleep smiling while thinking about a tall, dark, and handsome man.

A tall, dark, handsome, and _Bulgarian_ man, that is.

* * *

Saturday quickly approached. Hermione hadn't seen Viktor again in the library. She figured she had made herself look stupid the other night.

She shook it from her head when she decided to take Harry with her to Hogsmeade. Harry was quite miserable because of Ron's behavior and she decided he needed to get out of Hogwart's.

He stayed under the Cloak, which Hermione had returned to Harry as well as the Map. They were quite startled when Moody saw through Harry's cloak. Once Hagrid talked to him, they both decided they should return to the castle.

"Should I go? I mean, Hagrid made it seem really important, but I don't want to miss Sirius," Harry said.

"Sirius said to be in the Common Room at 1am, right? Just be sure to be back by then," Hermione reasoned.

After dinner, Hermione made a restless Harry go with her to the library to do homework.

"Listen, you have a good couple of hours before you meet with Hagrid. Do something useful," she said in her best bossy voice. Harry grumbled but complied. He scooted around the edge of the table to sit closer to Hermione because he had so many questions. To avoid being reprimanded by Madam Pince, they leaned in close to each other and spoke in whispers.

Little did Hermione know, a discouraged Viktor Krum left the library after seeing their apparent intimacy.

When the library closed, Hermione wished Harry good luck and went back up to Gryffindor tower. After she showered, she considered waiting in the Common Room to make sure Harry got back from his meeting with Hagrid and that Sirius contacted him successfully, but she decided to trust the two. As she was about to go to bed, she looked out her window and saw Viktor wandering the grounds. He looked in low spirits, but Hermione decided against going down and joining him. She had done enough sneaking around after curfew, plus she didn't know him well enough to know if he wanted company.

* * *

It was a week after the First Task. Hermione was in mostly good spirits, though she hadn't been able to visit Sirius recently. Ron and Harry had made up, like Sirius predicted. And Harry had done so well at the First Task! The only thing that hampered her good mood was the article that Skeeter had written about the nature of her and Harry's relationship. It was accompanied with a picture of Hermione embracing Harry. She shook her head in disgust. The wording of the article was such that Hermione suspected Slytherin input; "know-it-all" describing Hermione and "hero-complex" describing Harry. If she didn't know any better, she would have guessed those were Snape's words.

"He wouldn't talk to Skeeter personally, but I wouldn't put it past Snape to tell Malfoy exactly what to say to her," Harry scathed. Though Hermione usually defended Snape, she didn't exactly disagree this time. Snape calling her an insufferable know-it-all was firmly etched in her memory.

Later that night, Hermione was in the library. For the first time all week, Harry wasn't with her. He and Ron had decided to go down to the Quidditch pitch. Harry wanted to stay practiced for next year when Quidditch would resume.

Hermione worked steadily for about an hour when a familiar deep voice spoke behind her.

"You read alone," Viktor said, though he looked slightly said. "Vere is your boyfriend?"

"Oh, um...who?" Hermione asked.

"Your boyfriend, that Harry Potter," Viktor said, pouting a little. She realized he had probably seen Rita's article about her and Harry.

"Oh goodness, not that garbage. Harry's not my boyfriend, he's one of my best friends," Hermione said glaring at the thought of the article.

"But you vere in here together so much of the time," Viktor said, though he looked hopeful.

"Because I was making him do homework. Him and I are just friends," Hermione said confidently. Viktor smiled.

"Vell then, is this seat taken?" he asked, looking at the seat next to her. Hermione smiled and shook her head.

They talked happily until the library was about to close.

"Well I need to go. Um, it was really nice to talk to you again," Hermione said, smiling.

"Before you leave me this time, vould you tell me your name?" Viktor asked.

"Oh," she said, feeling stupid, "It's Hermione."

"Hermy-own-ninny?" he asked. Hermione couldn't help but giggle.

"Almost," she said. He grabbed her hand when she was about to leav.

"Listen, Hermy-onny," he tried to say her name again, "For the Yule Ball. Vould you go vith me?" he asked quickly, looking nervous. Hermione felt butterflies in her stomach and her mouth felt dry.

"Oh. Um, yes. I would love to," she finally managed to say. Viktor smiled.

"Maybe you vill be able to teach me your name," he said. Hermione smiled, feeling weak in the kness, and nodded.

"Goodnight, Viktor."

He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Hermy-oh-nee."

Hermione left feeling dizzy and happy all the way back to the Common Room.

"What are you so happy about?" Ron grunted at her as she entered.

"Nothing. What's your problem?" she asked. Ron grunted again and Harry spoke for him.

"It's the Yule Ball. We need to find someone to go with us," Harry said, looking like he had been given a death-sentence.

"Oh?" she asked amusedly.

"Well aren't you worried too? I mean, you have to worry about finding someone to ask you to go," Ron said grumpily. Hermione got instantly annoyed and stomped upstairs.

"What's her problem?" an oblivious Harry asked Ron.

Hermione huffed in frustration as she got ready for bed. Did Ron have to be so insensitive? Did he really believe no one would even _want _to ask her?

As she got in bed, an owl clicked its talons on the window. She opened it and took the letter.

_Dear Minnie McKitten,_

_I hardly remember what you look like because I haven't seen you in so long! I hope you know I saw that Daily Prophet about you and Harry. I'm all for it if it's true, which I doubt. Though I think Harry would be a lucky guy if it were true. All the same, I know of Skeeter's credibility and I used that paper for Buckbeak's droppings, just like the other article._

_Please come back to me, lady! Buckbeak is okay company, but nothing like a lovely young lady who makes me laugh!_

_Sadly,_

_Snuffles_

Hermione smiled. She looked at the clock. It was late, but she hadn't snuck out after curfew in at least a couple of weeks. She quickly grabbed her robe and headed out. She was now in good enough sprits to stand losing a few games of wizard chess.

* * *

It was the night of the Yule Ball. Hermione couldn't wait to show up in front of everyone, especially Ron and Harry. She was still mad at Ron. He had been so tactless, saying 'hey, you're a girl!' as if he just realized it.

She tried to forget about Ron as she met up with Viktor outside.

"Hermy-oh-nee! You look beautiful," he said and kissed her on the cheek. Hermione blushed as he led her inside. Hermione could only beam as several people did a double-take looking at her with Viktor, Ron among them.

She quickly forgot about it as she danced for a long while with Viktor. During a slow dance, he whispered some very sweet compliments in her ear, causing her to blush. She had unending butterflies in her stomach.

"Ven you blush like that, you are radiant," he smiled. Hermione smiled and was oblivious to the nasty looks Ron shot her from the side of the room where he and Harry were sitting.

After a while, Karkaroff called Viktor over.

"I vill find you later," Viktor said before kissing her on the cheek again. Hermione smiled and went over to Harry and Ron.

"Aren't you two going to dance at all?" Hermione asked. Harry looked up at her with admiration in his eyes.

"Hermione…you look beautiful," he said. Hermione beamed.

It was then that Ron decided to be a prat and started going on about Hermione dancing with the enemy. Hermione tearfully declared that if Ron wanted to go with her, he should have asked earlier. Harry gave Ron a look as Hermione rushed outside.

Hermione walked past the tables and bushes where several dates were snogging happily. She left the decorated area and walked down near the Great Lake. The Durmstrang ship sat dark and empty.

Why did Ron have to go and mess with the good time she was having? She shook her head and walked around near the edge of the forest out of view from the castle, not wanting to be found for a while.

She conjured up the little yellow birds she was so good at doing. Five of them flew around in a circle around her wand as she watched, trying to get back in a good mood.

Hermione heard a twig snap. Her head jerked in that direction, eyes wide with fear. She then smiled when she saw a big black dog. Then she looked worried.

"Sirius, what on Earth are you doing on school grounds?" she asked. Sirius transformed back to his normal form.

"Hermione, you look devastatingly beautiful," Sirius said slowly, looking at her with admiration. Hermione couldn't stay mad at him and smiled.

"Thank you," she said meekly. "What are you doing here?"

"Well I heard they make a big deal out of this Yule Ball, so I decided to come and check it out from a distance. Imagine my surprise when my favorite young lady came down here looking so distraught," he said questioningly. Hermione sighed. She vanished the little birds and told him about Viktor and how Ron acted.

"Well, he obviously does not know how to treat such a lady! And what a loss for him," Sirius said holding out his hand. Hermione was confused but took his proffered hand. He suddenly whirled her around and put his hand on her waist, pulling her into a waltz. She laughed and they danced gently to the faint sound of the distant music.

Hermione felt a little weird dancing with Sirius, but at least he had a shirt on for once. The distant music from the castle slowed to the pace for a slow dance. Sirius dropped his other hand to her waist as well and she moved her arms to his shoulders.

"You truly look beautiful, Hermione," Sirius said as he smiled down at the young witch.

"Sirius Black, you are a hopeless and shameless flirt," Hermione said with a half-hearted frown. He laughed.

"Just my nature, love." After a few moments of silence, he asked, "So, what were those birds you conjured up?"

"Little things with little wings," Hermione said absent-mindedly.

"What?" he asked as they stepped apart when the music stopped.

"Something my dad always told me when I was little. He told me whenever I get angry to think about little things with little wings, and it would make me feel better. It was from some poem his mom used to tell him. When I came to Hogwarts, the first time I got angry I thought about what my dad said and the little birds shot out of my wand," Hermione said.

"Little things with litte wings," Sirius repeated, looking at Hermione. "Wings."

"What?" Hermione laughed.

"For your official Marauder name. Either that, or 'Kitten'," Sirius said.

"Wings it is."

"Hermy-oh-nee?" Hermione heard called from a distance.

"I believe my Bulgarian is looking for me," Hermione said.

"You better go. Forget what Ron said. Have a good time," Sirius said, kissing her hand. "You really do look beautiful." With that, Sirius transformed back into the dog and disappeared in the forest. Hermione sighed and went back up to the castle. Viktor saw her walking up.

"There you are! I couldn't find you," he said.

"Oh, I just went for a walk," she smiled. They walked around the garden for a while, talking about a little bit of everything.

"Do you want to go back and dance more?" Hermione asked.

"Not yet," Viktor said. He leaned down and kissed Hermione on the lips. Hermione felt her breath catch in her throat and the butterflies in her stomach went wild. She slipped a hand up behind his neck and kissed him back.

* * *

**Now I wrote you almost 5000 words; surely you can spare a few? Please review. :)**


	4. Fourth Year: Part III

**So I got preoccupied with another story, thus I didn't update this one for nine months! But I really like this story so far so I have continued to write on it. I apologize for the break in updates.**

**I will now shut up :)**

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, etc.

* * *

The Winter Holiday was coming to a close in a few days. Hermione had spent the holidays with Harry and Ron of course, but also spent a good bit of time with Viktor especially after the Yule Ball. She did not forget Sirius though.

It seemed the pressure was off a little since the First Task and the Yule Ball. Many people had stopped being so hateful and the "constant vigilance" around Harry seemed to relax a bit. Hermione decided it would be a good New Years present to take Harry and Ron to see Sirius in person.

Hermione convinced them to go on a walk with her, saying she had a surprise. She took them in the direction of Hogsmeade, hoping no one would stop and question them. They were approaching the village when Hermione led them into the forest.

"Harry, mate, I think she's finally lost it. She's taking us in the forest to kill us. Knowing her, they'll never find our remains," Ron muttered, though Hermione heard it.

"As if I would leave remains to be identified," she quipped. Ron looked scared while Harry laughed.

"Seriously though, Hermione. Where are we going?" Harry asked. Hermione grinned widely.

"You'll love the surprise, I promise," she said. The made it to the base of the hill and began to climb. They were halfway up when they heard a screeching noise. They all looked up and saw Buckbeak land above them at the entrance to the cave.

"Wait is that Buckbeak? Does that mean-" Harry spluttered out, looking at Hermione. She nodded happily. Harry ran up the rest of the hill and into the cave, closely followed by Ron and Hermione. They entered the cave to see Harry hugging Sirius tightly who was laughing.

"Sirius!" Ron yelled.

"Hey Ronnie! How's the leg?" Sirius boomed, grabbing Ron into a half-hug.

"Much better, no thanks to you," Ron said, though he was smiling.

"How did you know he was here? Why didn't you tell me?" Harry asked, turning to face Hermione.

"Well he wrote me to tell me he was here. With you being entered in the tournament, he figured they might search and read your mail, so it was safer to write me," Hermione said truthfully, even though she failed to mention the time line of their letters. Sirius squeezed her shoulder and they all sat down.

After they had caught up sufficiently, Hermione stood.

"Well it is getting late. People will start to notice that we're missing," Hermione said. Harry looked disappointed but agreed. They all said goodbye and Sirius hugged Hermione last and then kissed her on the cheek.

On the way down the hill, Ron took the opportunity to be an arse.

"I've never seen you blush like that, when Sirius kissed you on the cheek just now. Except possibly when Viktor kissed you," Ron said scathingly.

"Tell me something, Ron," Hermione demanded, rounding on him, "Is this just your jealousy speaking or have you been taking lessons on personality from Snape?" Out of view up the hill at the mouth of the cave, Sirius grinned largely.

Ron spluttered in anger. Harry awkwardly looked between the two, obviously not wanting to get involved.

"Hey, did I tell you guys that Cedric gave me a clue about the egg?" Harry piped in after another few awkward moments.

"What'd he say?" Hermione asked, her wrath momentarily forgotten. Harry explained what Cedric has said about the Prefect's bathroom and 'mulling things over' in the bath as they continued their trek down the hill and back towards Hogwarts.

"That's odd," Ron said, "Sounds like he has crush on you. He's planning on seducing you, mate."

Despite being determined to be mad at Ron, Hermione found herself giggling at this. Harry playfully punched Ron in the arm.

"Besides Harry, Cedric is far too good-looking to go for you," Hermione added. Harry gave her an expression of mock-offense. Hermione's and Ron's eyes met for a moment. They had a tentative truce it seemed.

As they approached the castle, Viktor ran into the Trio.

"Oh Her-my-nee! Hello Harry, and…uh…" Viktor could not remember Ron's name. Hermione winced. She knew her and Ron's momentary truce was over now.

"Don't worry about it, _Vincent_," Ron fumed and walked agitatedly in the castle.

"It's Viktor, actually," Viktor called after Ron, obviously not sensing the hostility, "Oh well. Your red-headed friend seems in bad mood," Viktor said, looking back and forth between Harry and Hermione.

"Yeah, he does that," Hermione said.

"Well, I guess I'll see you later in the Common Room?" Harry asked Hermione. She smiled and nodded.

"Vould you like to valk?" Viktor asked. Hermione nodded and took his arm. They walked in some distance before Hermione decided to speak.

"It's Ron," Hermione said awkwardly.

"Vhat?" Viktor asked, confused.

"My red-headed friend's name. It's Ron. I've told you that before," Hermione said.

"Oh. I suppose your beauty made me forget," Viktor smiled.

Hermione smiled weakly in return, but found his remark to be vapid more than anything. All the same, Hermione was determined not to allow Ron to ruin her evening.

They found a nice secluded spot to sit and began to kiss. After a few minutes, Viktor's hand moved from where it was resting on her knee and began moving up. He had been doing that a lot lately. As always, Hermione grabbed his hand and put it back on her knee. Viktor seemed unfazed and did the same thing a couple of minutes later.

Hermione couldn't deny she found Viktor attractive, but she was not ready for any of that. She sighed and moved his hand back again.

* * *

As the Spring Term began and classes resumed after Christmas, Hermione settled back into her comfortable school routine.

She and Sirius continued to communicate via owls because they had decided it was too dangerous to visit as often as they had before she had brought Harry and Ron. She received his first owl since that visit on Wednesday morning.

**ooo**

_Dear Heartbreaker,_

_It has been too long since I have seen you! You may not recognize me if you saw me now. All the greatly appreciated food has gone straight to my thighs! I'm enormous. Buckbeak can no longer support my weight. Do you still love me even though I'm three times the man you once knew?_

_Anyways, I couldn't help but overhear the spat between you and Ronnie when you visited. Nice comeback, lady! He should have known better than to get into a battle of witty insults with you. I agree with you completely! He is either jealous or becoming Snivellus Junior. Give him my pity._

_Please do come and visit when you can!_

_Strained Love (because of my fatty heart),_

_Snuffles_

**ooo **

Hermione couldn't help but giggle several times as she read the letter. She looked up when she realized people were staring. Two of those people were Harry and Ron.

"What, did _Vincent _send you a love letter?" Ron asked, looking for a fight.

"No, actually. Snuffles did. We're thinking about running away together and eloping. We were planning on painting "just married" across Buckbeak's flanks, honey-mooning at Azkaban, then returning to the humble cave to raise little curly-haired Marauders and live happily ever after," Hermione quipped. As she spoke, she gathered her things and promptly left the table. She was in no mood for Ron. Both Harry and Ron were left staring after her.

"You've really got to stop doing that," Harry said to Ron. Ron shrugged and continued eating his breakfast.

To be honest, Hermione was frustrated. Things had started out so well with Viktor. He had been interesting to talk to and very sweet. Now that they were spending a lot of time together, it seemed he was only interested in one thing. And it was not learning her friends' names. In all honesty, Hermione had thought about ending things with Viktor, but she couldn't stand the thought of Ron's triumphant look if he heard the news.

"Am I really dating someone out of spite?" Hermione asked herself. She stopped in the corridor she was going down I light of that realization. She was suddenly in a very bad mood.

She suddenly felt like doing something she had never done before. Skip class.

She changed directions to head to Gryffindor tower. She dropped of her books and bag in her dormitory, but on her way out of the Common Room she ran into Harry.

"Oh hey Harry. Listen, I'm in a really foul mood so I'm going for a walk," she said distractedly. Harry gaped.

"What about… classes?" Harry said. He never knew Hermione to skip class.

Hermione shrugged and left.

* * *

Harry sat down in Potions next to Ron.

"Where's Hermione?" Ron asked.

"Not coming," Harry said, dumbfounded.

"What?" Ron asked with sudden interest.

"Said she was in a bad mood and that she was going for a walk," Harry repeated what Hermione told him. Ron huffed.

"'Going for a walk?' Is that what they're calling it these days?" Ron asked sarcastically. Harry paused.

"You don't suppose she really has gone off with Viktor?" Harry asked, frowning. That didn't seem like her.

"Don't care," Ron glared, though Harry didn't believe him.

Snape made his dramatic entrance so the two forgot their curiosity for the moment.

* * *

On her walk, Hermione ended up down near the kitchens. She had been visiting Dobby quite frequently to find out about working conditions and to get food for Sirius. On this occasion, she didn't know quite what she was doing down there.

She tickled the pear on the portrait hiding the entrance to the kitchens and entered.

"What are you doing here? Are you not supposed to be in class?"

Hermione shrieked and turned only to look into the beady eyes of Igor Karkaroff. She put her hand to her chest as she tried to calm herself.

"Well I could ask the same of you," Hermione retorted feeling particularly bold.

"Hermione Granger," Karkaroff said after a few moments, stepping closer to an apprehensive Hermione, "Viktor tells me he finds you most entrancing."

Unsure of what he was getting at, Hermione said nothing.

"I only hope that you do not become a distraction, you see. Winning the Tri-Wizard Cup is his main goal here. Not little girlfriends. He has plenty of those," Karkaroff said snidely. For some reason those words cut like a knife.

"I see why you and Professor Snape are friends. You're quite alike," Hermione quipped, still feeling quite brave. This got Karkaroff's attention.

"I've heard you had a big mouth from 'my friend', but not such a smart one," he said with a sinister smirk. As he was speaking, he nonchalantly ran his hand through his hair. As he did so, his sleeve fell down his arm and Hermione saw a tattoo. She recognized it as the Dark Mark and her mouth fell agape.

Realizing what she had seen, Karkaroff quickly retracted his hand.

"Dobby has the food for Mr. Karkaroff," a little voice piped in, "Oh, hello Miss. Did you miss breakfast too?" Dobby said, seeing Hermione.

"Until next time, Ms. Granger. Despite your blood-status, I find you quite intriguing. And I do not see you as a threat as long as Viktor is not distracted. Believe me, you do not want me to see you as a threat," he said in an intimidating tone.

"Hmm," was all Hermione managed to respond.

Hermione released the breath she was holding as soon as Karkaroff left though the portrait.

"Dobby did not like the way he talked to Miss Hermione. Dobby will never get him food again," Dobby squeaked. Hermione smiled.

"No Dobby, there's no need for that. I think he just likes to hear himself talk," Hermione said. Dobby giggled.

"Would you like some food, Miss?" Dobby asked. Hermione almost said no, but changed her mind.

"Sure Dobby. Can you make a lunch for two?" Hermione asked, deciding where she was going from here.

"Right away!" Dobby squeaked and disappeared.

Hermione decided she was going to go visit Sirius. She felt bad going without Harry and Ron. Well… at least she felt bad about going without Harry. But she wanted to ask him about Karkaroff. Had he been a Death Eater?

Her thoughts were disrupted when Dobby returned with a basket in record time.

"Thank you, Dobby. I appreciate it," Hermione said with a smile. As always, Dobby's eyes watered and he choked on a sob as he waved good-bye.

* * *

Hermione enjoyed the walk to the cave. She had had to dart around the castle, avoiding anyone who might realize she should be in class. She then had to hurry across the grounds and avoid being in sight of the Great Lake where Durmstrang's boat was sitting. Once she made it in the woods, she relaxed.

She was surprised at herself. She was skipping class, and she had mouthed off to an adult. An apparent former Death Eater in fact. Hermione then began to doubt her wisdom in mouthing off to him. She wondered about his statements about her blood status and how she was intriguing. Hermione rebuked herself for letting her mood affect her behavior in such a potentially dangerous way.

'I really am acting like a Marauder,' Hermione mused to herself as she approached the cave.

She reached the mouth of the cave and called out.

"Sirius," she said. She didn't want to drop in completely unannounced. She didn't hear a response. She called twice more before entering.

She looked around and saw that Buckbeak was not there, and neither was Sirius. Hermione was disappointed. She set the heavy lunch basket down and sat with her back to the cave wall. Despite being mid-morning, she found herself becoming very sleepy while waiting for Sirius to return. She stumped over so that she was lying on her side and curled up. She hadn't dressed warmly enough. One of her last conscious thoughts was to wonder if Sirius had warm enough clothing.

* * *

Hermione awoke feeling much warmer. She moved her arm so she could rub her eyes but something was weighing her down. As sleep left her, she realized she was in the cave. She scolded herself for falling asleep; she didn't know how long it had been and people may have noticed that she was gone. Still in the process of waking up, she tried to move her arm again. This time whatever was draped over her moved too, and grunted.

Sleep was immediately gone as she realized what had been keeping her warm: Sirius. She carefully turned over and found herself face to face with a sleeping Sirius. She realized how odd he must have found it to return to the cave only to find her sleeping there. And he had then fallen asleep next to her and kept her warm. Finally realizing he had been holding her as she sleepy, Hermione blushed deeply. She carefully sat up, but her movement woke him as well.

"Hermione!" Sirius declared, saying her name correctly for once. "You can imagine my surprise when I found you here, asleep! You looked too tired to wake up, and too cold for that matter," Sirius shot her a lopsided grin, which split into a yawn.

"Well you took care of that," Hermione muttered looking down, embarrassed. She quickly wanted to change the topic. "What time is it? Also, I brought lunch."

"I see you did," Sirius said, sitting up. "It's just after noon." Hermione began pulling food out of the basket.

"So are you going to tell me what upset you so much that you came out here in the middle of a school day?" Sirius asked, "Not that I mind."

"Long story. Aren't you going to ask me why I let myself fall asleep out here?" Hermione asked, still embarrassed.

"Well, it's you so I figured there was some logic to it," Sirius replied.

"I haven't used much logic today, actually," Hermione admitted.

"Tell me," Sirius said gently as he began to eat.

"Well before anything else, I feel I need to say that I believe you exaggerated your weight gain in your letter," Hermione grinned. Sirius looked much healthier. It was January, so he wasn't lying around shirtless anymore, but his face didn't look nearly as gaunt.

"Not at all, you must be blind," Sirius dazzled her with a grin, "but please. Tell me what's going on."

Hermione sighed and told him everything about breakfast and Ron, and then about running into Karkaroff in the kitchen.

Sirius laughter filled the cave.

"You really told him you see why he and Snivellus are friends?" he asked disbelievingly.

Hermione nodded modestly.

"I believe I'm a bad influence on you, love," Sirius mused. Hermione smiled.

"So what do you think of Karkaroff. I saw his Dark Mark, so he was a Death Eater, right?" Hermione asked. Sirius nodded.

"If I remember, he's not as much a piece of work as some of the other former Death Eaters, but he can still be right nasty," Sirius said. He had looked worried as Hermione told him about their exchange. "I would keep your distance from him. And possibly from Viktor if necessary," Sirius said thoughtfully.

"No, I can't stay away from him," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

"Oh?" Sirius questioned with a look of surprise. "And here I was thinking you had told Harry and Ron about our wedding, but obviously you're hearing the wedding bells around Viktor," Sirius teased. Hermione shot him a look of disgust.

"No, nothing like that. I wouldn't mind spending some time away from him, really. Far too hands-on," Hermione admitted, but then felt embarrassed for talking about such a thing.

She was waiting for Sirius to tease her, but he had an unhappy expression.

"If he's bothering you, I'll take care of him," Sirius said, quite seriously.

"Oh, no, not at all Sirius. He's just… persistent is all. Besides, like I said, I wouldn't mind spending time away from him," Hermione said.

"You're not quite making sense, love. You said you couldn't stay away from him," Sirius said, looking perplexed.

"Oh, well… you remember Ron being an arse about everything. I don't want to give him the satisfaction…" Hermione said, realizing she sounded quite ridiculous.

Surprising Hermione, Sirius laughed heartily.

"Are you telling that my sweet little 'Mione is staying with a boy just to make a friend angry?" Sirius chuckled.

"Well, when you say it like that it sounds really bad," Hermione conceded and looked down.

"It sounds quite like me, actually," Sirius' eyes twinkled.

"How so?" Hermione asked.

"Well I don't know how many stories Remus ever told on the Marauders," Sirius began.

"He talked with Harry mostly. But from what Harry told me, he didn't tell many stories about the Marauders," Hermione though back to her many talks with Harry.

"Now, that's a shame, because we have a lot of good stories," Sirius grinned nostalgically.

"Now tell me how I'm like you?" Hermione was genuinely curious.

"Ah yes, using that lad to piss your friend off. I did much the same thing, but with a girl. A lovely red-headed girl with green eyes, actually."

"Harry's mum?" Hermione asked in shock. Sirius nodded.

"It was fifth year, and it was nothing serious. James liked her, but she couldn't stand him. I ended up getting to know her pretty well that year and you know, things took off. James was right pissed about it for the longest time. In reality, Lily and I soon realized we were completely wrong for each other but we enjoyed messing with James off too much," Sirius grinned with a twinkle in his eye.

"So you two only continued to go out to make James angry?"

Sirius nodded. That only lasted a little while, but it was enough to make James realize he really liked her. Even after Lily and I eventually split, she didn't want to be with James. So he started to clean his act up and be less of an ass to everyone. They started going out seventh year, and the rest is history," Sirius finished.

"Wow," Hermione said.

"And I see that in your situation you have made Ron quite jealous. Are there wedding bells in your future, I wonder?"

Hermione snorted.

"No. He's a good friend; I don't know why he's acting like this. He gets weird like that. I mean, he got mad at Harry for being in the tournament, remember? He gets angry every time something happens to a friend and he doesn't know every detail of how or why," Hermione fumed. "I guess he feels left out somehow," Hermione said after a moment, the realization setting in.

"Oh, now I see you feel bad, love. Don't. He's acting like a child, you don't need to hold his hand and tell him that he's special," Sirius said.

"Hmm," was all Hermione said as she finished her lunch.

* * *

Hermione left the cave feeling better and worse at the same time. She felt like maybe it was time to make up with Ron, and she didn't know what she was going to do about Viktor. She absently made the return trip to the castle.

"Granger, as much I appreciate the silence your absence brings, I see that you are not sick and most likely without an excuse for missing class," a voice boomed form behind her in the corridor.

Hermione jumped and turned around to face Snape. She said nothing; she had no excuse.

"I'll take your silence as a confession. Twenty points from Gryffindor and you can have detention every Friday night through February," he sneered as he walked away. Hermione groaned; she knew she deserved it for skipping class. She groaned again as she realized the second task was on the last Friday in February. Surely Snape wouldn't make her miss it?

Feeling quite down, Hermione went up to her dormitory where a letter and package were waiting for her on her bed.

**ooo**

_Dear Snuffles Junior (better than Snivellus Junior, right?),_

_I hope this beats you back to the castle. You seemed quite down when you left. I know I missed your birthday in September, and I've been waiting for a good occasion to give this to you. Please cheer up and keep that irresistible smile on your face!_

_Your Tubby Personal Body Warmer,_

_Snuffles_

**ooo**

Despite her mood, Hermione found herself smiling at the letter. She then turned her attention to the package and opened it.

A necklace fell onto her bed and she picked it up. On a twine strand was a hand-carved wooden pendant, about the size of her thumb. It was an intricately carved set of wings. On the back in tiny letters was carved:

_"A little thing with little wings, for my little Wings_

_With shameless love,_

_Snuffles"_

Hermione thought it was beautiful and very thoughtful.

Lavender Brown then entered the dormitory. Hermione quickly hid the letter and gift in a drawer in her bedside table.

"Oh, hey Hermione! Everyone was worried that you weren't in Potions. Especially Viktor, he was waiting for you outside of class. In fact, he asked Professor Snape 'vhere you vere'," Lavender giggled. Hermione groaned inwardly. "He's probably still looking for you. He really seems to like you," Lavender said as she put her things down.

"Thanks, Lavender. I'll see you later," Hermione said.

"Going to find Viktor?"

To be honest, the fact that he had waited for her outside her class and even dared to ask Professor Snape where she was, while bad news for Hermione, was endearing.

"Yeah I think so," Hermione said as she headed out.

* * *

**I'm sticking to the main plot points, but with my own twist on some of the details. Let me know what you think!**


End file.
